Love and Suspicion Read online

  WHILE HE WAITED WITH Birdie to keep her safe, Rod called Nancy.

  “You’re back?” she happily asked.

  “Where are you?”

  “I’m at home? Where should I be?”

  “Nancy, it was Wayne Griffin who kidnapped Tiffany Woodbury.”

  “What?” Without thinking, she pulled a chair away from the table and sat down. “You must be wrong.”

  “I wish I were, but it’s been confirmed. He killed Shelley Woodbury too.”

  Nancy was speechless until she finally said, “I just got a chill. You mean a killer was at my house at night checking on us? But he seemed to truly care.”

  “I’m sure he did. Want me to come by later and explain it?”

  “Please.”

  “It might be late.”

  “I doubt I’ll be able to sleep anyway.”

  AT JUST AFTER 9:00 pm, when Wayne Griffin stepped out of the taxi at the airport, the police arrested him, patted him down, and put him in cuffs. He hung his head as they put him in a waiting patrol car, and after it pulled away from the curb, Wayne’s gold retirement pin lay in the gutter.

  As soon as he got the call, Otis notified Rod and said to meet him at Earl’s.

  IT WAS LATE WHEN OTIS and Rod pulled up in front of Earl Woodbury’s mansion. Beverly was surprised. She greeted them and then glanced back at Earl to see if she should let them in. Earl nodded, so she opened the door wider.

  “Where’s Tiffany?” Rod asked, taking his hat off his head. “She’ll want to hear this.”

  “Someone looking for me?” Tiffany asked as she came out of the kitchen with an apple in her hand. “Oh, it’s you. You find the kidnapper yet?”

  “As a matter of fact, we have,” said Otis. “Mind if we sit. It might take a while to tell this story.”

  Earl sat up straight. “Is Tiffany still alive?”

  “We think she is. It was Wayne Griffin who took her and we think he’s been hiding her in Ireland all these years.”

  Earl took a very deep breath as though he’d been holding it forever. “Thank God.”

  “Wayne kidnapped her?” Beverly asked.

  Otis began to explain, and then turned it over to Rod to fill in the blanks. When Rod finished, he waited to see if Earl had any questions.

  “I knew Tiffany was not mine,” Earl admitted, but I would have raised her as my own. You think Wayne used the money to take care of Tiffany?”

  “Probably,” Rod answered.

  “Then it was well spent after all.”

  “Nice to see you talking again, old man,” said Otis. “I suspect we should let your rest now.”

  “One more thing, Sheriff,” Earl said as he stood up.

  “What’s that?”

  “Tell Fagan he’s got his old job back at the factory if he wants it.”

  “I’ll do that,” said Otis.

  JUST AS OTIS AND ROD walked out the door, Tiffany got a text from her father. For a very long time, she stared at the message, returned the text, and then turned her phone off.

  “Is something wrong?” Beverly asked.

  “No, just my father asking where I am,” she lied. “It is time for me to be on my way anyway. I’ve decided to start college in the fall, and there is a lot I want to see before I do.”

  “What about Ben?” Beverly asked.

  “We’ll stay in touch,” Tiffany answered.

  When she stood up, so did Earl. “I was hoping you might like to see Ireland with me.” When Tiffany suddenly went into his arms, Earl gladly wrapped his around her.

  “There is nothing I’d like better than to spend more time with you and Beverly, but I have stayed too long as it is.” Trying not to linger any longer, she pulled away and started for the stairs. “Time to pack.”

  “You’re leaving in the morning?” Beverly asked.

  Tiffany stopped and turned back. “That’s the plan. Don’t worry, I’ll pick up breakfast somewhere on the way.” With that, she hurried into her room and closed the door. She plopped down on the edge of her bed, pulled her phone out and reread the text. “Why?” she muttered. She wanted to cry, but Tiffany was never very good at hiding swollen eyes. Besides, crying always gave her a headache. No, she had to save her tears for the next economy motel she happened to find – in a town very far away from Blue Falls.

  IT WAS NEARLY MIDNIGHT when Rod drove down the lane and parked in front of Nancy’s house. Her lights were still on and even before he got up the steps, she opened the door.

  Instantly she went in his arms. “I keep hearing noises.”

  “Don’t worry, he’s in the Des Moines city jail and he’ll be going away for a very long time.”

  She walked with him to the sofa and sat beside him. “They won’t believe it, you know, all the farmers. I’m having a hard time believing it myself.”

  He put his arm around her and when he did, she snuggled closer. “Otis is beside himself. Wayne was right under his nose the whole time and he never once guessed.”

  “So what did happen?”

  They talked long into the night and when he finally kissed her, she welcomed it. “I know it’s too soon,” he said, “but I’m hoping someday you will marry me.”

  “It’s not too soon,” she whispered as she returned the passion in his kiss.

  EARL WAS STILL HOME when Tiffany started downstairs the next morning. He relieved her of her big suitcase, while she went back for her smaller one and her laptop. Together they walked to her car, where he helped her load up.

  “Are you sure you can’t stay for breakfast?” Beverly asked from the open doorway.

  “I’m sure, but thank you.” Tiffany went back, hugged Beverly and then hurried back to her car before tears began to cloud her eyes. She gave Earl one last quick hug, got in her car and drove away.

  That was the easy part. The hard part was yet to come.

  Tiffany took several deep breaths, and then slowly drove up Main Street. As she pulled into Ben’s garage and got out, she muttered, “Quick and easy.” She expected him to be working in one of his three garages. Instead he came out of the office and this time his hands were not all greasy.

  “Come to say goodbye?” he asked as he walked to her.

  She frowned, “I forgot how fast news travels in this town.”

  “Where are you going?”

  The tone in his voice was stern and not at all what she expected. But then, she didn’t know what she expected. “Wherever the wind blows me.”

  “I see. Are you coming back?”

  “Ben, try to understand. Someday you’ll fall in love again, so will I and we’ll both be better off for it.”

  “Do I have anything to say about it?”

  “I can’t stay and I can’t come back.”

  “Why?” he demanded.

  “I can’t tell you that either.’ She stared into the eyes she loved – the same eyes that took her breath away her first day in Blue Falls. This time there was pain in them. She forced herself to look away, before she was tempted to fall into his arms and hold on forever. “Goodbye, Ben.” She got back in her car, backed up, and then drove back down Main Street toward the interstate onramp. “Don’t look back,” she said, “Just don’t look back.”

  A few minutes out of town, Tiffany pulled onto the frontage road and then turned down a road called Lonely Lane. She hadn’t gone far before she pulled over and got out of her car. Never had she felt such agony as she did having to say goodbye to Ben, and fighting the urge to cry was nearly impossible. Tiffany closed her car door, and then took several deep breaths to calm herself down. She wasn’t thinking clearly – how could she be? One moment she wanted to run all the way back to Ben, and the next she was convinced she was doing what she absolutely had to do. Suddenly, she drew in a sharp breath. She promised to let Mariam know before she left. She could call her, but how many goodbyes could she handle before totally losing it?

  Mariam would just have to forgive her.

  It was then that she saw
Crazy Eddie’s truck coming up the lane. She watched him pull up behind her, and to her amazement, he got out and walked to her. “Finally, we meet,” she said far more cheerfully than she felt.

  “You can’t go,” he said. “Ben needs you. This whole town needs you.”

  Tiffany hung her head. “My dad wants me to come home.”

  Eddie pointed east. “That’s funny, you’re headed west and home is that way.”

  “I know.” She took another deep breath and tried to avoid looking in his eyes.

  “Wanna tell me what’s wrong?”

  “I can’t. It doesn’t matter now, none of it matters now.” She turned away and reached for the handle of her car door.

  “You’re name isn’t really Tiffany Clark, is it.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because I called every detective Clark in the state of Rhode Island, and none of them have a daughter named Tiffany.”

  She tried to be flippant about it, “Wrong state apparently.”

  “Cedar Rapids, Iowa, according to your car registration.”

  When she started to open her door, he blocked it with his hand. “It’s not Ben you’re running from, is it?” He got no answer, so Eddie continued, “If you leave before finding out the truth, you’ll just come back eventually.” He pulled a photograph out of his pocket and handed it to her.

  Tiffany stared at the picture for several moments before she asked, “May I keep it?”

  This time it was Eddie who didn’t answer. Instead, he let go of her car door, turned around and walked back to his truck. Crazy Eddie got in, revved his engine, pulled away, and took off down the lane at record speed.

  It took a while for Tiffany to admit he was right. She would come back eventually – she would have to. Then again, maybe the pain would be gone by then. Ben would be married and maybe she would be too, although she doubted she could ever love again – not like that.

  She was less than a few miles away from the reason she came, and what would it hurt to have a look, that’s all, just see what she could see, and then be on her way. She didn’t have to stay, she didn’t have to tell anyone, and she didn’t have to admit Crazy Eddie was right. Yet, he was right!

  At length, Tiffany got back in her car, drove back to the interstate and headed toward Blue Falls. At the next off-ramp, she turned and then drove into the parking lot of Birdie’s Bed and Breakfast. For a long moment, she stared through the window at the pretty woman standing behind the lobby counter – the same woman as the one in the picture. Birdie had not noticed her yet, so there was still time to drive away and forget the whole thing. Then again, she was already there and inside that door was the answer to so many questions.

  Tiffany abruptly opened her car door. “Do it!” she commanded as she got out and boldly went inside.

  “Hello,” said Birdie. “Need a room?”

  “No, I was just... if you’re busy, I can come back sometime.” She was about to turn around and run when Birdie answered.

  “I’m not busy. Are you Tiffany Clark?”

  “Yes, how did you know?”

  Birdie left the back of the counter and motioned for Tiffany to have a seat on the sofa. “I’ve heard a lot about you. Bravo for putting Gloria in her place. She needed someone to point out her nonsense.”

  Tiffany decided to stand, and then sat as soon as Birdie took a seat. "You'd not think so if you knew."

  "Knew what?"

  Tiffany sighed. “Oh, everything is so screwed up. I just found out last night myself. Don't you see? I can't marry Ben. His mother said that the last thing she ever wanted, was for her son to have Michael for a father-in-law."

  Birdie’s mouth dropped. “Wait, slow down, you lost me.”

  Slowing down was not something Tiffany was familiar with. “And I’ve lied to everyone about practically everything. I’m not from Rhode Island, I lived all, well not all, but most of my life in Cedar Rapids. Even my car didn’t really break down. My dad told me how to make it look like it did. So you see, it’s all a lie, except that I do love Ben, I love him more than I thought I could ever love anyone. I took some hair out of Earl's comb and sent it to my father. He's a detective and my DNA matches.”

  “You’re Earl’s daughter?” a shocked Birdie asked.

  “Not his daughter, his granddaughter.”

  Even more stunned, Birdie whispered, “Are you sure?”

  Tiffany wrinkled her brow. “Positive, unless someone else used Earl’s comb, but I can’t imagine anyone could have, Beverly is a very good housekeeper, and...”

  “Tiffany?”

  “What.”

  “If Michael is your father, who do you think your mother is?”

  “You, but it could be someone else. Knowing what I know about Michael, he did get around back then. Even so, Beverly said you had to give a baby away, and I thought, I mean, I hoped you might know for sure.”

  Birdie couldn't help but smile. “I have a copy of my DNA chart upstairs.”

  “Really? We could send it to my dad...ah, my adopted dad, and...”

  Birdie grabbed Tiffany’s hand and rushed her up the stairs. She unlocked her bedroom door, ran to a desk drawer and found what she was looking for. She laid it on the desk and flattened it out so Tiffany could take a picture with her cellphone. A moment later, Tiffany sent the picture to her dad, and then practically collapsed on the edge of Birdie’s bed. She immediately sat back up. “It shouldn’t take too long. Dad is pretty good at this sort of thing.”

  Standing not far from the bed, Birdie drew in a much needed breath and folded her arms. “There is a possibility we are not a match, you know.”

  “Really? Who else was Michael involved with?”

  Birdie rolled her eyes and went to sit beside Tiffany. “I doubt even Michael remembers, but I have not heard of anyone else having to give a baby away. My father was a congressman and my pregnancy embarrassed him.”

  Tiffany simply could not contain her excitement, and just as abruptly got up to pace the floor. “Really? I didn’t know that part. How old were you?”

  “Sixteen. I turned seventeen right before you...or my daughter was born.”

  “But it was a girl, right?”

  “Right. I only got to see her for an hour and then she was gone.”

  “My mom, my other mom, said that’s how that sort of thing usually happens. Of course, my birth mother might not have wanted me, or want me now. They warned me over and over to expect that.” Tiffany wrinkled her brow. “Would you want me?”

  A tear came to Birdie’s eye. “More than life itself.”

  “Wait, hold everything! I know how to find out even faster than my dad can. Someone wrote something on my baby blanket. Do you know what it was?”

  Birdie slowly stood up and this time she truly struggled to hold back her tears. “Blue Falls.”

  Tiffany caught her breath. “That’s it then, you’re the one! Gosh, it took ages to find Blue Falls on a map because it’s so small, you see, and who could have guessed it was right here in Iowa. I didn’t think to enlarge the map at first and when I did, there it was. As soon as I graduated, I...”

  “Tiffany?”

  “What?”

  “I don’t mean to interrupt your history lesson, but don’t you think you should notify your dad before he goes to all the trouble of confirming our DNA match?”

  “Oh, he’ll do it anyway. He’s fussy like that, then he and Mom will fly out to thank you for giving them a good, but sometimes flighty daughter. Flighty they call me, but I don’t mind.”

  “They aren’t hurt that you wanted to find me?”

  “Gosh no, and won’t they be thrilled that I’m not another Gloria?”

  Birdie smiled. “Your half-sister, whom you degraded in front of the whole town?”

  Tiffany slumped. “That’s what I mean. And would you believe, Alex tried to ask me out, but Birdie, I never once thought Michael might be my father. If Beverly had not told me about you, I never would have
thought to test Earl’s DNA.”

  “Remind me to thank Beverly.” She drew closer and touched her daughter’s dark hair, the same dark hair as Michael’s.

  “You can hug me, if you want,” said Tiffany, “but you can’t cry or I’ll cry and I might never stop.”

  “I promise,” Birdie said as she gently took her long lost daughter into her arms. She closed her eyes and held her for a very long time before she let go.

  “I must get my willpower from you,” Tiffany said. “I didn’t cry either.”

  “Are you hungry? Do you want something to drink?”

  “You got anything for breakfast? Beverly would have fed me, but I just wanted out of this town before I ended up married to Ben.”

  “You broke up with him?”

  “Yes, and just this morning. It was awful, just awful.”

  Birdie didn’t hesitate before she pulled her phone out of her pocket and placed a call. “Ben, Tiffany is here with me and she has something to tell you. Come now.” She hung up before Ben had a chance to answer.

  “Oh, now you’ve done it,” said Tiffany as she followed Birdie down the stairs, through the lobby, and into the kitchen.

  Birdie turned on the lights, stopped, turned around, and took hold of her daughter’s arms. “I’m not going to let Michael ruin your life the way he ruined mine, Nora Coulter will get over it and Ben is strong enough to resist anything Michael could ever throw at him. Besides, Michael doesn’t have to be a part of your life unless you want him to. He swore he was not your father, and I will be happy to throw that in his face as often as I can.”

  Tiffany shrugged, “Yes, but weren’t you jail bait and that’s why...”

  “So was Pamela.”

  Tiffany put her hand on her stomach. “Birdie, I don’t think I can eat just now. My nerves are a jumbled mess.”

  “So are mine.” Birdie turned the lights off, and then ushered Tiffany back into the lobby.”